Passing on genetic mutations for disease is one of the greatest fears among parents-to-be, but a new technique may alleviate some of those worries.

Mitochondrial disorders affect about 1 in 10,000 people and can cause a range of medical problems from stunted growth, vision loss, neurological disorders to kidney disease. Some of these originate in mutations that code for mitochondria, which are the cell’s workhorses that churn out the energy a cell needs in order to function. Other aberrations can arise from mitochondria’s own DNA; mitochondria hold a unique place in human biology because they contain their own unique DNA and can make their own proteins, apart from the proteins that the cell manufactures.